## Chapter 151 – 151. Waybell (3)
#151. Waybell (3)
‘I shouldn’t be saying this as the captain of the guard, but personally, I recommend getting out of this city as soon as possible.’
‘…Why?’
The bitter smell of tobacco scattered in the wind.
The captain of the guard said this to me as I was about to leave his office.
‘Because this is a city rotten to the core, enough to make you sick.’
Looking out the window with a self-deprecating smile, I couldn’t find any affection for the city in his eyes.
All that was there was blatant disgust, nothing more.
“Whoa, elves are really pretty, aren’t they?”
“Hehe, right? Those little ones must be her children, and is that the mother? She’s way more beautiful than my wife.”
“Ah, how great would it be to live with an elf.”
“Forget it, man. Not only decent nobles, but even wealthy merchants hesitate to bid on elves. She’ll probably be sold at the auction house in the noble district.”
The gazes of the passersby watching the elf family crying in fear didn’t show a hint of sympathy.
Rather, they were excited, shouting and cheering.
Waybell, a city built on the blood of slaves.
I think I understand the meaning of what the captain of the guard hinted at.
The cheers of the citizens became unpleasant noise, pounding against my eardrums.
“Haa, haa…!”
“Iris…?”
Iris, who had been watching the scene, suddenly collapsed.
Sweating profusely and hyperventilating, she looked like she was having a seizure.
While I was distracted by Iris, the carriage carrying the elves disappeared somewhere.
I wanted to chase after the carriage and save the elves, but if such a commotion broke out in the middle of the city, innocent victims would inevitably be harmed.
I had no choice but to focus on getting Iris out of there first.
However, everywhere was crowded with people, so I had to run mainly through deserted alleys.
After turning through several alleys, I was finally able to relax and take off Iris’s hood.
As I loosened her clothes and handed her water, Iris’s breathing gradually evened out. After a while, her face looked much more relaxed and calm.
“…Iris.”
But her pale complexion and eyes filled with various complex emotions remained the same.
I couldn’t bring myself to say anything to her.
I couldn’t dare to fathom the shock Iris must have received.
“Hyunwoo-nim…”
Iris, who barely raised her head, had eyes that were red as if tears would overflow at any moment.
I hugged her without saying a word.
Before long, my chest began to get wet.
I stroked her back to help Iris calm down.
Her slightly trembling shoulders were so small and fragile.
An uninvited guest came to us.
“Finally found you.”
The uninvited guests were four burly men and one small man.
Judging from the various weapons, ropes, and sacks they held in their hands, they didn’t seem like simple passersby.
“Master, what should we do with the man?”
“Hmm… I was just going to get rid of him, but this guy is quite the high-quality item too. The woman should be unharmed, but the man can be somewhat injured. We can just heal him with potions anyway.”
As soon as the small man finished speaking, the four men rushed towards us.
At that moment, I heard something snap.
It was my reason.
***
Elmar, the owner of the Elmar Trading Company, which mainly deals with slaves, was quite influential in Waybell.
He had never captured an elf slave before, but he had made a considerable profit by auctioning off several rare beastman slaves.
Normally, he wouldn’t have moved from his office, but perhaps he had become impatient after hearing that a slave hunter from a rival trading company had captured an elf slave.
As soon as he heard from a guard at the checkpoint that a woman with great beauty had entered the city, he led a few hunters and rushed out into the streets himself.
Finding the woman wasn’t difficult.
This is Waybell, the city of slaves, and there were quite a few guys who sold information about foreigners who were outstanding in appearance or suspicious in some way.
‘There’s a man who seems like a bodyguard with her… but he can’t do anything alone.’
Having lived in this city for decades, it was easy for Elmar to chase them through the alleys.
And before long, he was able to find his target.
However, because she was being held in the man’s arms, he couldn’t see the woman’s face, which was the most important thing. But after doing slave trading for decades, he could tell whether she was a high-quality item or a low-quality one without even looking at her face.
‘Top quality…!!’
She was top-notch, even among the top-notch.
Moreover, the man’s appearance as a bodyguard was also quite decent. His skin was white, his appearance was neat, and he was also large.
Of course, it could be dangerous because he didn’t know the bodyguard’s skills, but that’s why he brought the best hunters from the trading company.
With these four, they could capture even a gold-ranked adventurer without any problems.
Elmar didn’t worry at all.
“Hey.”
That’s why he couldn’t understand why the situation had turned out like this.
Elmar sat on the ground, looking around.
The hunters he had brought were lying in the alley with their limbs torn off.
The sticky brain fluid and blood dyed the surroundings bright red.
He was the only one who survived in that hellish place.
And a few steps away, there was a man exuding a terrible murderous aura towards him.
He felt like a villager standing naked in front of a ferocious dragon.
“P, please save me…”
Thump, thump, Elmar kept banging his head on the ground, begging for his life. He shamelessly asked for mercy in order to preserve his only life.
But there was no answer.
Sweat poured down like rain, and Elmar wanted to cry like a child in fear, but they say there’s always a way out even if the sky falls.
“…Do you know about the elves who were captured in the city today?”
At that moment, Elmar glimpsed a very small hope.
“Y, yes, I know! If you’re talking about the elves captured by the Lake Trading Company, I know them well!”
“Then do you know when and where the auction will be held?”
He had only exchanged a few words, but he felt like a sharp blade was touching the end of his neck.
His voice kept trembling, so he had to pinch his thigh as if he would tear it off.
“T, the auction is tonight…! It will be held at the auction house in the noble district! If you want, I can also prepare an invitation to the auction house!”
Elmar’s mind was working harder than ever before.
Should he have offered gold instead of an invitation?
Or a high-quality slave?
He knew that the only ones who survived in the end were those who proved their necessity, so he couldn’t help but tremble.
“I’ll come find you when the sun goes down. If you don’t prepare the invitation by then…”
The man trailed off.
The sweat that had been beading on his forehead fell endlessly.
“I, I’ll prepare it no matter what!!”
Elmar had never been so grateful that he was the owner of an influential trading company as he was today.
About 30 minutes later, when he carefully raised his head, the man had already disappeared.
Elmar was relieved that he had survived, rather than being concerned about his pants that had become wet.
***
I took Iris to a nearby inn.
Perhaps because business wasn’t doing well, there were no customers, so I was able to rent the best room.
Of course, even the best inns in a medieval fantasy-like world were bound to have worse facilities than an old motel in the modern world.
Just looking at the bed, I didn’t want to lie down on it.
I roughly cleaned it up and took out another bed from my inventory. I carefully laid Iris down on it.
Perhaps the sight of the elves being carried away in the carriage was a bigger shock than I had imagined, Iris’s eyes were swollen from exhaustion.
I stroked her hair and looked out the window.
‘…Lake Trading Company, was it?’
My 고민은 짧았다.
역시 내 말을 제대로 들어줄지도 모르는 영주와 협상하는 것보단 노예를 취급하는 상단 몇 개를 부숴버리는 편이 빠르고 편하겠지.
마력과 살기를 가다듬으며 객실을 중심으로 결계를 펼쳤다.
지금부터 갈 곳에 아이리스를 데리고 갈 수는 없는 노릇이니, 최소한의 방비는 필요했다.
그렇게 10분 정도 지났을까, 마력의 3할을 투자한 대인 방어형 결계가 완성됐다.
이제 적의를 가진 상대가 억지로 객실에 침입하려고 하면 2서클 화염 마법이 발동해 적을 잿더미로 만들 거다.
그렇다고 문이나 벽을 부수려고 해도 소용없다. 2서클 마법을 연달아 날리는 정도가 아니면 흠집조차 안 날 테니까.
결계학개론 수업 때도 언급된 고정형 방어 결계와 유동형 탐지 결계를 응용한 거였다.
물론 직원에겐 내일 아침까지 들어오지 말라고 해놨으니 억울한 피해자가 생길 일도 없겠지.
인벤토리에서 편지지를 꺼냈다.
-잠시 어디 다녀올 테니, 일어나면 여기서 기다려줘. 늦어도 내일 아침까진 돌아올게.
추신, 마차에 실려있던 엘프들은 걱정 안 해도 돼.
어플의 능력인지 한글로 편지를 적어도 이세계의 언어로 자동 번역되기에 걱정할 필요는 없었다.
저녁과 아침 분의 도시락을 테이블 위에 올려놓은 후, 창문을 통해 여관을 빠져나왔다.
술자인 내가 아닌 이상, 창문을 열기는커녕 부수는 것조차 불가능할 거다.
어느새 점점 저물어가는 해를 등진 채 여전히 인파로 북적이는 거리를 걸었다.
기억을 거슬러 올라가다 보니, 금세 경비대의 건물에 도착할 수 있었다.
투명 마법을 사용한 채 위로 올라갔다.
당연한 말이지만, 병사들은 나를 보지 못했다.
경비대장의 집무실 문을 열고 들어갔다.
그 순간 정확히 내 목을 노리고 검이 날아왔다.
깔끔하고 예리한 궤적이었지만, 정작 힘과 속도는 별 볼 일 없는 수준이었기에 옆으로 살짝 움직이는 것만으로 피할 수 있었다.
“쯧, 피한 건가.”
검을 휘두른 건 경비대장이었다. 아마 갑자기 문이 열린 걸 보고 휘두른 듯했다.
제법 감이 좋은 남자였다.
괜한 문제가 생기기 전에 마법을 해제했다.
“…넌?”
“또 만났네.”
그제야 안심한 듯 경비대장은 검을 집어넣으며 소파에 주저앉았다.
“하아… 암살자인 줄 알았네.”
“암살자? 경비대장한테 찾아가는 암살자도 있나?”
“…글쎄.”
경비대장은 의미심장한 표정으로 대답을 회피했다.
나 역시 남정네의 사정 따윈 궁금하지 않았기에 구태여 캐묻진 않았다.
“그래서, 무슨 일이지?”
“별 건 아니고, 조금이나마 은혜를 갚을 겸 귀띔 하나 해주려고.”
“음?”
“오늘 밤, 귀족 구역의 경매장에서 지원 요청이 들어와도 무시해라.”
“…진심인가?”
“목숨보다 신념을 중요시하는 타입이라면 와도 상관없지만.”
내 눈을 바라보던 남자는 농담이 아니라는 걸 깨달았는지 한숨을 푹 내쉬었다.
“…그럴 리가.”
“다행이군.”
“대신 부탁 하나 해도 되겠나?”
“뭐지?”
익숙하게 성냥으로 담배에 불을 붙인 그는 한 모금 빨아 마시곤 입을 열었다.
“치안대는 어지간하면 죽이지 말아다오. 그놈들이 죽으면 경비대가 바빠지니까.”
“노력해보지.”
“고맙군.”
그 말을 끝으로 우리 사이에 대화는 없었다.
해가 완전히 저물어가는 걸 바라보던 난 창문을 밟고 집무실을 빠져나가 골목길에서 만났던 남자의 몸에 붙였던 마력의 흔적을 따라갔다.
그렇게 도착한 건 제법 번듯해 보이는 건물이었다.
똑똑, 문을 두드리자 험상궂게 생긴 남자가 나왔다.
“…기다리고 있었습니다.”
남자를 따라 건물 안으로 들어간 난 응접실처럼 보이는 곳에서 왜소한 체격의 남자를 만날 수 있었다.
골목길에서 살려 보냈던 그 남자였다.
“에,엘마르 상단에 방문해주셔서 진심으로 감사드립니다.”
“초대장은?”
“물론 준비해뒀습니다!”
남자가 손짓하자 대기하고 있던 여직원이 초대장을 들고 왔다.
초대장을 이리저리 살펴보고 있던 내게 여직원이 추가로 무언갈 들고 왔다.
“이건?”
제법 고급스러워 보이는 사자가면이었다.
“귀,귀족 구역의 노예 경매는 기본적으로 익명을 원칙으로 합니다. 참가자는 무조건 가면을 써야 하죠.”
“익명이라…”
뭐, 이해가 안 되는 건 아니었다.
명망 높은 귀족 나리가 성노예를 사가는 걸 타인에게 들키고 싶진 않을 테니까.
“저… 경매장엔 드레스 코드가 있습니다만, 혹시 저희 측에서 예복을 준비해드려도 괜찮으실지…”
“그래.”
그제야 남자는 긴장이 살짝 풀렸는지 허리를 세우며 여직원에게 지시를 내렸다.
여직원이 들고 온 검은색 예복을 입으며 남자에게 말을 걸었다.
“너도 경매에 참여하나?”
“아,아뇨!”
마지막으로 커프스 링크를 채우며 사자가면을 썼다.
“운이 좋군.”
